New Orleans teachers are receiving their last paycheck from before Hurricane Katrina -- and are being informed that they will not be paid again util schools reopen.

he paycheck issued this week to teachers is for the last pay period before the storm hit, said Bill Roberti, a director with the restructuring firm of Alvarez & Marsal, which runs the school system.

"This is the last payroll we will be able to issue for the time being," Roberti said in a briefing. "We were not able to move forward with the $50 million financing we were pursuing to keep the district afloat. We are very low on cash at this time."

The 7,000-employee, 116-school system was already in dire financial shape before Katrina hit, which is why the firm was pursuing the $50 million finance package.

A total of $13 million in payroll is available at Western Union branches across the country for teachers to pick up, Roberti said.

The state's schools superintendent said Tuesday he will ask Congress for $2.4 billion in aid for teacher benefits and salaries, and Alvarez & Marsal sent a letter to U.S. President George W. Bush as well, asking for help.

I pray for these teachers, since I know what terrible shape I would be in if the school where I teach closed and my salary were to be cut off.

And I am thankful that my district has found places for a few teachers, as have most of the other districts in the Houston area. Houston ISD itself held a job fair last week to try to find teachers for the 3000 extra students thay have taken in.

And while some of you may have seen the awful story from Jesse Jones High School, that is not typical of what is going on around here. Most of these kids are being welcomed with open arms at their new schools. I know the two in my classes are simply outstanding young people, and none of my colleagues have had a negative word to say about the evacuee kids in their classes, either.

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